My dodgeball team won first place for the lower bracket of our dodgeball league on Friday, so I took Saturday off to rest and recover Sunday I went in and had to change things up a little because I'm not in my normal gym due to spring break. Food and nutrition are lagging a little this week, my head hasn't been totally in the game. I'm still putting up bigger numbers each week, though.

Biggest struggle right now is eating - the hunger just isn't there. I'm hoping this is at least somewhat a result of this never ending winter that we're having, and that when the spring truly breaks and I'm outside more the eating will start coming more naturally. Still sitting ~2200 kcal/day but I know that's not enough right now for anything much more than maintenance. Pushed for some big increases on my snatch grip deadlift today in lieu of squatting big because there was a guy in the rack doing every variation of standing barbell lift I've ever seen and I just wasn't in the mood to bother asking to work in. Next week I'll be back in my regular gym with enough racks and benches for everyone, and I've started writing up some new programming to start integrating a little cluster training into my 5x5 lifts that I plan to start next week.

Haha thanks! I just started working it back in a bit after having completely abandoning the leg press for squats awhile ago... but I like the extreme quad focus and there's nothing quite like putting up 400lbs in any way possible

Mini Forklift Ⓥ wrote:Congrats on the dodgeball win, cool.

Hope you have had a good week, keep up the effort with your training MF.

Thanks MF, it was a really fun time! My team is staying together for flag football in a couple weeks, too, so we'll see how that season turns out!

Saturday I went in for a long day. Hit conventional deads for the first time in a month... and it sucked. I'm really disappointed. I felt a lot weaker coming back into conventional deads after going snatchgrip from a deficit for the past month and I really hated it.

...Scratch that. THIS is why I keep a log. I just looked back at the last time I pulled conventional and I hit 2x225lbs then moved up for 1rep PRs. This weekend I pulled 3x225lbs pretty comfortably and called it there. I just need more confidence in myself. Maybe I didn't lose deadlift strength like I thought I did. I'm undecided about whether I'll go back to conventional for the month or if I'll go back to pulling snatchgrip. I'd work deadlifts in more days of the week to work on more pulling styles but deadlifting really takes the gusto out of me for the rest of the day (as much as I love it while I'm in the gym). Maybe I'll consider simplifying my programing a little bit to work in some more deadlifting. We'll see.

Also swapped in pin presses instead of bench presses today, which I think I'll be doing for at least the next month or so. My bench press is so weak, and I feel like I've been stuck for a couple months, so it's time to switch it up a bit. Pin Presses sucked but in a good way - hopefully they'll make me stronger.

I felt a little crunched for time today in the gym so I stuck with big lifts, and tonight at home I'll going to continue on with the calisthenics that I've been doing lately. I set up a "pay-the-toll" system for going into my closet a bit ago (which I do on and off, but I've been better lately!). Basically that means that I've got my pullup bar in the door frame and every time I go through I have to bust out a set. I'm attempting to match that with a pushup set whenever I can, and I started doing what are essentially rack pull ups by pulling up from under a table in my living room and taking out the ab roller now and then. I figure if I can go heavy in the gym 4 days of the week and work bodyweight stuff in at night/throughout the day I'll be lookin pretty good come summer, and hopefully a little heavier. It's just about nice enough for running to start being comfortable too, so that's good news. Biking is great but I can't wait to be able to run more too, especially because I can get the dogs in on that!

I picked a new program, because I've decided structure is good for me. Today I started on Bill Starr's 5x5 program, with very slight modifications (sub Snatchgrip Deads from deficit for conventionals, One-Arm Barbell Rows for bent over rows, and StraightLeg deads instead of weighted hypers). I will get bigger and stronger. This program is only 3 days a week, so I'm going to go all out lifting those days and still have plenty of time to work in calisthenics and yoga and football conditioning on "off" days or as 2-a-days. Volume is really pretty low, as well, so that will be something new for me, but I'm pretty stoked about squatting 3x/week. I'm recommitted to eating more. I just have to get it in. Drinking a post-workout shake as I type, even if the single serve chocolate shakes I have at work are not my fave. It's just fuel!I started in on day 2 of Starr's program because I plan to work in Tuesday, Thursday, and Saturday, with Saturday being a longer session with a few more accessories and just general enjoying time in the gym.

That's the plan!!! I've learned that I can really pack it in on my weekend off days and the scale will go up for a day or two and then come right back down as soon as I train through the week. It's a balance but if I can keep the numbers goin up slowly I'm still happy!

Took the whole weekend off in prep for starting out right for Starr's 5x5. I'm working on switching to suicide grip for my bench press, which I think in the long run will be for the best, but in the short run I overestimated my maxes for bench today because I'm gettin used to the new grip. If anyone's interested, I read a really interesting article about bench press that showed how a thumbed grip for bench press kind of forces your elbows out and you have to fight harder to keep them in, whereas when you use suicide grip it all stays in line much easier. I definitely felt like my elbows stayed in closer to my body without having to work as hard at it, but I felt more pressure on my wrists from completely supporting the bar in my palm. I may switch to a thick bar with the suicide grip, but I know I won't be able to use a thick bar in comp so I'm undecided if that's worth it.

So far I really like Bill Starr's 5x5. I'm making modifications to the bench press recommendations, but I pretty much love the way it's set up otherwise. One-arm barbell rows with the landmine have quickly become one of my favorite moves for upper back, excellent range of motion and tension with that. I really like squatting 3x/week.